Custom Portrait of Joey
(Chestnut Horse)
12″ x 16″ Oil Painting on Linen Canvas Hardboard
©2010 Leanne Wildermuth
All Rights Reserved

Well here it is – the update you’ve been waiting for! Joey’s portrait is complete. I could not be more pleased with this piece, and I am so proud to be able to share it with you. I hope you enjoy it, as well!

This is an oil painting, completed on a 12×16 linen panel. My client will be framing the piece and gifting it, so I am excited to hear how both he and his recipient enjoy it in person. It’s traveling all the way over to the UK over the next week, God willing it will arrive with time to spare.

Enjoy!

Here’s the 6th day progress shot on Joey’s portrait – I’ve made it down to his eye, detailing his mane over his forehead, and I’m in the beginning stages of detailing the muscle and veins throughout his face. Many, many fine brushstrokes make up his coat, so it is taking a bit longer than anticipated but it is still coming along on schedule.

I’ll be painting into the night tonight, so I’ll have still another update (or two) on his portrait for you over the next few days!

Thanks for checking in!

Another progress shot for you on Joey’s portrait. I’m working from the top down, now. Yesterday I completed his neck, ears and the top half of his white patch, so now today I can go back and paint the remainder of his mane over the top on his forehead.

I’ll keep working down his face today and if all goes well, get a nice long session in so that I can finish up this portrait in time for it to dry, varnish, scan and ship by Friday.

I’ll post another progress shot tomorrow so be sure to check back!

Here’s the fourth progress shot of Joey’s portrait. I’ve completed the under painting at this point so the next stage will be to start detailing in the blades of grass up to his muzzle and then complete the detail in his coat and muscle structure as well.

Just a few more sessions and Joey will be complete! My goal is to get this piece en-route to its destination (from the US to the UK) by the end of next week.

Stay tuned for more progress on this painting – and have a great weekend!

I made quite a bit of progress on Joey’s portrait yesterday, painting in the fence line, the background of the pasture and the base for the dark shadows of the blades of green grass in the foreground. Next, I’ll work in the under painting of Joey. I’ll work in some of the grass as well, but the very bottom/foreground grass will come up in front of Joey as he’s grazing, so those will be the last bits that I’ll work on.

No painting today, these dark colors (olive, indigo) take an extra day to dry. I’ll post another progress on Friday, after tomorrow’s session.

Enjoy!

Here’s my progress from my first sketch/painting session yesterday. I’m working in the background, fence line and pasture. I’m hoping to finish the background today. I’ll update again after I’m farther along.

I have to say – I’m enjoying painting on linen, and may very well make it my preferred canvas choice. The paint just glides right on and for the very thin layering technique that I use, I am getting along with it really well!

Time to load up my little MP3 gadget and get back to the studio – have a great day!

I’ve just begun a new portrait; this is a lovely chestnut horse named Joey that I’ll be painting in oil on a 12×16 linen board over the next couple of weeks.

This is my first time using linen in place of cotton canvas. Since this painting will be framed, I wanted something sturdy and classic and chose to go this route. I’m really excited to start working in the background pasture! Speaking of which, I’d better cut this short and get back out to the studio!

Thanks for checking in! I’ll post another progress update soon.

I’ve just completed Stacie and Foo Foo (aka A Girl and Her Bunny) – what a sweet portrait this turned out to be, with the bunny love and the feelings I get when I look at this precious moment!

Of course I gave my own Dusty bunny some love while I painted, too, and she also helped as a reference when I painted Foo Foo’s nose. It’s always good to have a live model on hand. (Need to remember this for future paintings of loveable furry things that I do not have in my family yet.)

It’s been a while since I painted a person in oils, and funny thing – I used the exact palette I always use. Natural skin tones can be achieved with just five colors – yellow ochre, magenta, white and sap green for the majority and the deepest shadows, lashes & brows were done using raw umber tinted with magenta. I’ll be painting a couple more humans here in the next few weeks, so I’ll get plenty more skin time very soon!

Enjoy, and have a great weekend! I hope you’re healthy and keeping your snouts and hooves clean!

(snort, snort… swine flu… get it? We’ve got it!)